The current disclosure generally relates to a physical therapy apparatus for body parts and limbs. More specifically, the current disclosure relates to a rehabilitation apparatus used to facilitate joint movement in a physical therapy patient using the apparatus, the patient having a limb with a joint.
It is common medical practice to have corrective surgery for joints, such as knee and elbow joints. After such surgeries, the patient typically goes through a period of rehabilitation in which the patient has some period of healing associated with the surgery followed by a period of a specific planned movement for that joint. This process is typically referred to as a physical therapy treatment following a surgical procedure.
This is especially true when the surgery involves the joint of a limb, such as the knee of the leg or elbow of the arm. The focus of this physical therapy is to return as much of the range of motion of the joint as possible following the surgery. The typical physical therapist will want to move the joint to and from a fully extended and a fully bent position as much as possible given the medical procedure performed. Additionally, throughout this physical therapy treatment that range of motion will increase as the patient participates in the physical therapy sessions.
Additional features of physical therapy processes are exercises, or range of motion procedures, that the patient can perform by himself or herself between the physical therapy sessions at home without direct medical supervision. These range of motion procedures are also designed to increase the flexibility and/or strength of a joint post-operation.
There are currently numerous physical therapy devices that can help facilitate these physical therapy sessions and the range of motion movements used therein. For example, U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,089,330, 5,020,795, 5,324,245, and 8,784,343, and United States Patent Application Publication Numbers 2013/0345032, 2014/0088466, 2014/0094721, 2014/0200490, and 2014/0228186 are directed at physical therapy devices.
However, these devices include large, heavy equipment, many of which are only suitable for a medical office, such as a doctor's or a physical therapist's office. Additionally, it is difficult and cumbersome for a patient to move or transport many of these devices because of their size, weight, and complexity. The complexity of some of these devices also make them inappropriate for use absent medical supervision. As such, while physical therapy devices may exist that are effective to facilitate joint movement in a limb, such devices lack portability and are not suitable for at home or personal use.
Additionally, many patients are prone to frequent travel away from home. Large, heavy, and complicated physical therapy devices are not conducive for traveling, and patient's often have to either carry such cumbersome physical therapy equipment with them when they travel, or choose to forego physical therapy during their travels, both options being generally undesirable. Often patient's will choose to forego their treatments, which can set back the progress of the physical therapy treatment.
What is needed then are improvements to physical therapy apparatuses for facilitating joint movement.